After concluding the (sporadic) overview of Topps baseball cards from May 2007 to January 2010 and attempting to break it down to allow children or new collectors to see each section (group of year(s)) separately; I would like to venture to the next brand, Fleer. Fleer entered the card market in 1959 and had a history of being a thorn in the side of Topps. Until 1981, Topps had a virtual monopoly of the card market.

Fleer was established in 1885 but did not enter card production until 1959. Fleer and Ted Williams agreed to a "contract" and issued an 80-card set of Williams. Fleer also produced small sets in 1960 (80 cards) and 1961 (154). Most cards in these three sets are affordable, but due to the overall scarcity, trying to complete an entire set would cost quite a bit of cash.

The 1959 William's set and 1960 Baseball Greats set have short print (SP) cards which are quite difficult to obtain. Card #68 in the '59 set was pulled from production very early and card #80 from '60 is very scarce (there are two versions; each with Pepper Martin and either Eddie Collins or Lefty Grove on the opposite side). The '59 Williams SP commands about 50% of the going price for the remainder of the set and either SP from '60 three-to-four fold more than the remainder.

Jerry Keys

The reason Fleer was unable to produce cards of current players such as Hank Aaron or Mickey Mantle was similar to the Topps vs. Bowman frenzy a decade earlier. Topps held exclusive rights to procure cards of virtually all players in the majors. Fleer was able to assemble a set of current players in 1963 (67 cards) but was unable to sign several major stars (Aaron, Mantle, etc…) and failed to offer a set large enough to rival Topps.

Identical to Topps and Bowman in the early 1950's, some players only appeared in the '63 Topps, some only in '63 Fleer, and some in both sets. The '63 set was printed on a 66-card sheet and near the end of production, #46 Joe Adcock was replaced with an unnumbered checklist. Therefore, the checklist commands about three times the price of the next highest card in the set. The '63 set was Fleer's last "major set" until the Topps monopoly was broken in 1981.

Fleer did manufacture nine sets between 1966 and 1975 but none included active players. A number of the sets contained team cards, former players, or previous World Series. Along with Donruss, Fleer became a competitor to Topps. Each new card company was rushed into production to bring their sets to market alongside the 1981 Topps release. The 1981 Fleer and Donruss sets are historic for the number of errors in each. In the beginning each company claimed it was due to a "rushed product," but years later some speculated it was executed to garnish attention.

Fleer consisted of a 660-card set from 1981 to 1990 and introduced a 12-card World Series set in their 1987-90 factory sets. The '81 set was the only year Fleer produced manager cards. At the end of the set were "superstar" cards and team checklists (one team on front, another on back-later expanded to two teams on front and back). These two were end-of-set staples throughout the 80's and into the early '90's. Superstar cards were additional cards of player(s) who were popular at the time of set release. Another quirk Fleer offered from 1981-88 was the two participants in the previous World Series were the first two teams in the set, Series winners first, then the losing team. Until Fleer was issued in separate series (1993), each team was numbered together (and except '81…in alphabetical order).

From 1981-83, Fleer was not able to luck up and produce a bombshell rookie card Topps overlooked. Topps started the "traded set" in '81 and was able to corner the "first made rookie card" of any breakthrough rookie of the day. Fleer appeared to hit the jackpot in '83 when Topps overlooked Ron Kittle in their main set (but did catch Kittle in the traded set). Anyone who was collecting in '83 definitely recalls discarding seemingly worthless rookie cards of Tony Gwynn and Ryne Sandberg in search of the Kittle. Fleer was not able to notice Darryl Strawberry in time (unlike Topps) and decided to produce a late-season set to rival the "traded set."

In the first three years, both Fleer and Donruss rookie cards never were as popular as the Topps version. The rookie cards of Cal Ripken, Gwynn, Sandberg, and Wade Boggs were always highest in their Topps version. Fleer (and Donruss) upgraded their design and in '84 surpassed Topps in popularity. In addition, Fleer came out with their version of the "traded set;" the "update set." Call it sheer luck or wizardry, the '84 Update included the only "true" rookie card of Roger Clemens and Kirby Puckett. Fleer also made a sharp move by making the update set "limited" or in shorter quantity.

Fleer's '84 Update is still considered a very desirable set, fetching more than any Topps set after 1975. In the early 1990's when all the rookies were in their prime (and card prices were almost at their peak), the set commanded $1,000 (or more). Beginning in '84, Fleer outpaced Topps and was arguably the most sought after brand until (ironically) Upper Deck came along in 1989. Fleer's regular set and update set easily outpaced Topps and their traded set continuously over the next several years.

The 1985 Fleer Update offered Darren Daulton's only true rookie card and Fleer turned the tables on Topps by bringing better prices for the same rookie cards in both sets. 1985 also saw the introduction of the two-player rookie cards in the regular set-Fleer made room for these by putting four team checklists on one card. Even though the '85 Fleer Clemens and Puckett was their 2nd Fleer card, they still were more sought after than their 1st Topps card.

The 1986 Fleer Update and 1987 Fleer Barry Bonds has historically sold for more than their Topps counterparts. The '87 Fleer Barry Larkin and 1988 Tom Glavine has as well. Fleer also matched Topps' version of "Tiffany" with "Glossy." Although Glossy was only released in five sets (1987-89 Fleer and '87-'88 Update), they enjoyed increased popularity in the late '90s.

Due to the baseball card crash of the mid-90's, any Fleer set or Update (minus '84) is easily affordable. At one time, the 1983-87 sets were selling over $100 (the '84-85 over $200). A NM+/MT 1982-1985 Fleer may still command $50, much less than in the 1989-93 "card craze." The next three Fleer segments will cover the later Fleer years, Fleer subsets, and Fleer Tradition.